1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to lures for fish or other sea life. More specifically, the present invention relates to fish lures which have a unique attractant dispenser supported by the lure body to dispense a desired liquid attractant into the water when the lure is used to enhance the likelihood that a fish or other sea or aquatic life will xe2x80x9ctake the baitxe2x80x9d.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various types of lures, bait and the like have been used by fishermen in order to catch fish or other sea life which occupy various bodies of water. Lures are attached to a fishing line and positioned at desired locations in the water at a fixed stationary location or moved in a desired pattern in order to entice the fish to xe2x80x9ctake the baitxe2x80x9d. Since it has been recognized that fish and other aquatic life are attracted to their food by the scent of the food, scent material has also been developed and associated with fish lures or fish hooks in order to attract fish or other sea life to the vicinity of the lures or hooks. It has been the practice, in some instances, to apply the attractant directly to the external surface of fish lure bodies, hooks or other fishing gear. One procedure which has been used extensively is providing a fluid or liquid attractant in a manually operated spray container or a pressurized spray container in order to apply the attractant to the fish lure or hooks. This procedure is time consuming, messy and requires the transportation of a bulky container in a tackle box and usually results in the attractant being deposited on the hands or other areas of the person applying the attractant to the lure. Other lures have been provided with structural features to dispense attractant into the water in adjacent surrounding relation to a fishing lure.
The following U.S. patents relate to fishing lures with scent material associated therewith including structures to enable elimination of the spray containers or other large containers of scent material:
While the above patents disclose various fishing lures having structures for dispensing scent into the water adjacent a fishing lure to attract fish to the vicinity of the lure, they do not disclose a breakable ampule containing a quantity of attractant scent material which is enclosed within a flexible container having a wick at an open end thereof to enable release of the attractant from the interior of the container into the water when the ampule has been broken by squeezing the outer container. Further, the prior art does not disclose alternative configurations of the lure, alternative liquid attractants and alternative associations of the flexible outer container and breakable ampule with the fishing lure as incorporated into the present invention.
The present invention comprises a lure for fish or other aquatic life embodying any of the many external configurations and constructions normally used in catching fish or other sea life together with a dispenser enabling an attractant material to be dispensed into the water adjacent the lure to more effectively attract fish or other sea life to the vicinity of the lure. In accordance with the present invention, the dispenser includes a generally cylindrical flexible container and a breakable ampule containing a quantity of liquid attractant, positioned within the flexible container. The flexible container is preferably constructed of a plastic material and the breakable ampule is preferably constructed of glass. The breakable ampule within the flexible container can be broken by squeezing and deforming the container sufficiently to break the ampule and release the liquid. One end of the container is open and provided with a porous plug forming a wick for the fluid attractant when it is released. A preferred dispenser container is disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 6,039,488, owned by the same assignee as the instant application.
The fishing lure can have a body of any desired design and construction for the particular fishing application and can include any of the configurations normally used in fishing lures. It also has structure enabling the dispenser to be supportingly associated with the lure. The liquid dispenser can also vary in size depending upon the size and configuration of the lure and the desired fish or other sea life being sought. Further, the lure and dispenser combination of the present invention can be used in sea water, fresh water or any other type of water, as desired by the user.
In one disclosed embodiment of the invention, the fish lure body includes a cavity extending longitudinally into the body from the rearward end to enable insertion and retention of the flexible container within the cavity. The cavity is sized to allow the cylindrical container of the dispenser to snugly fit in the cavity and be held therein during use. The open end of the container closed by the wick is exposed to the rear of the fish lure body in order to dispense the liquid attractant. The container is deformed and the breakable ampule broken with the container then being inserted into the cavity with the wick exposed at the rear of the fish lure body so that liquid attractant released from the breakable ampule into the container will be dispensed into the water adjacent the fishing lure for attracting fish or other aquatic life to the lure.
In another disclosed embodiment of the invention, the container is supported externally of the lure with the porous wick again extending toward the rear of the lure so that liquid attractant discharged into the interior of the container when the breakable ampule is broken will be dispensed into the water adjacent the fishing lure. In accordance with the present invention, it is preferred that the container dispenser be supported on the lure body with the porous wick end extending towards the rear of the lure. In this manner, as the lure is pulled through the water, the water passing over the wick end aids in drawing the attractant fluid off the wick and into the water. It is also believed in so doing the wick is then able to draw the attractant fluid more rapidly out of the container during movement of the lure. On the other hand, when the lure is at rest in the water, the liquid attractant is dispensed off the wick at a much slower rate.
The shape, configuration and construction of the lure body may vary and the liquid attractant may also vary depending upon the type of fish or aquatic life sought and the type of water being fished. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a single dosage dispenser of a fish attractant which can be easily carried by the user to the point of use. The dispenser container can then be broken immediately before use to release the attractant. The dispenser is then assembled into or on the body of the lure which is specially designed to receive and support the dispenser in a desired manner and the dispenser is designed to provide a controlled release of the attractant when assembled on the lure body and the lure is placed in or moved through the body of water being fished. Thus, the present invention provides a lure to more efficiently lure various fish and other sea and aquatic life into the vicinity of the fishing lure and to more effectively lure the fish or other water life to xe2x80x9ctake the baitxe2x80x9d.
An object of the present invention is to provide a lure for fish or other sea life having a single dose attractant dispensing structure associated therewith.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a fishing lure in accordance with the preceding object in which the dispensing structure includes an outer flexible container having an open end provided with a porous closure plug in the form of a wick exposed to the water surrounding the lure combined with a breakable ampule within the flexible container. The breakable ampule includes a quantity of attractant which is released into the flexible container when it is squeezed sufficiently to break the ampule thereby enabling attractant to be slowly dispensed through the wick into the water surrounding the lure thereby more effectively attracting fish or other sea life into the vicinity of the lure.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a lure having a body provided with an elongated cavity opening to a rearward portion of the body with the cavity, flexible container and ampule dispenser being compatible in size to enable the flexible container to be fittingly inserted into, and held within, the cavity with a porous plug wick exposed to the water at the rearward portion of the lure body.
A further object of the invention is to provide a lure having an attractant dispenser mounted externally of the lure body with the dispenser including a flexible container having an open end closed by a porous plug forming a wick with a breakable ampule positioned interiorly of the flexible container. When the ampule is broken by squeezing the outer container, the attractant in the ampule is discharged through the wick into water surrounding the lure.
A still further object of the invention is to provide a lure for fish or other sea life in accordance with the preceding objects in which the lure can include various configurations, shapes and structures including existing lures which can be modified to receive or support an attractant dispenser as set forth in the preceding objects.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a lure for fish or other aquatic life having an attractant dispenser associated therewith in which the attractant includes the scent of various baits normally used to attract fish or other aquatic life to the vicinity of the lure.
Yet another object of this invention to be specifically enumerated herein is to provide a fish lure with liquid attractant dispenser in accordance with the preceding objects and which will conform to conventional forms of manufacture, be of simple construction and easy to use so as to provide a device that will be economically feasible, long lasting and relatively trouble free in operation.
These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of constructions and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout.